Tag Archives: advisory committee

When the preliminary Master Plan for the redevelopment of Friendship Court was introduced in late 2016, it proposed replacing the existing townhome-style buildings entirely with apartment-style multi-family buildings. The intent at the time was to quadruple the number of apartments, from 150 to 600. Apartment-style buildings were the only way to achieve this number of apartments.

The community as a whole, both from inside and outside of Friendship Court, expressed consistent concerns on multiple aspects of the preliminary Master Plan. Specifically, pursuing solely apartment-style buildings, and the resulting total number of apartments overall, were raised as primary concerns. These, and other issues, prompted the need to refine the redevelopment plan in order to properly reflect resident goals.

Currently, nearly all apartments at Friendship Court are two-story townhomes with front doors leading directly outside to sidewalks and/or green spaces. Many residents, particularly families with young children, have expressed a strong desire to maintain the immediacy of their connection to the outdoors. For these families, having direct access to the outside is both a lifestyle preference as well as providing a sense of safety and watchful eyes on their children at play.

On the other hand, there are many other residents who are excited at the prospect of an apartment-style building. Many residents have expressed interest in the amenities provided in multi-family buildings, such as workout rooms, computer labs, and meeting rooms. Further, for elderly residents, or for those with mobility impairments, the prospect of elevator access and single-level floor plans is deeply welcomed and tremendously beneficial.

The bottom line is that residents want choices that match their desires and needs. As we finalize the refinement of the site plan, residents on the Advisory Committee have discovered the necessity of balancing multiple, sometimes competing, priorities: creating ample green spaces, adding new affordable units, providing both townhome and apartment housing types, the need for sufficient parking, the cost of construction, etc.

The resulting updated plan does a remarkable job at establishing this balance, providing as much choice in housing types as possible while creating a neighborhood framework that retains desired characteristics and re-knits the community to the surrounding city.

From the outset of the planning process more than two years ago, one of the first clear decisions was establishing an absolute commitment to zero displacement of Friendship Court families through the redevelopment process. This assurance is made possible by using a strategy of phased development.

The existing open space bordering 6th Street SE at the eastern edge of the site provides a remarkable opportunity to build first before anyone moves. Phase 1 of the redevelopment will be built only on the existing open space to make this strategy feasible.

Once Phase 1 construction is complete, approximately 100-110 beautiful new homes will have been built. 40 families from Friendship Court will move into their new homes alongside new additional affordable and market rate apartments. Each phase of development will be integrated with mixed income households.

Phase 2 construction will commence soon after the first 40 Friendship Court families have moved in. The 40 existing apartments they will have just vacated will then be torn down and replaced with a new batch of beautiful homes. This sequence of building first and then moving in will continue until everyone is re-housed through all phases, thereby maintaining zero displacement through the entire process.

The preliminary master plan released in 2016, envisioned seven phases of redevelopment, equating to a lengthy twelve year construction period, or perhaps even longer. One of the most significant concerns we heard from residents at Friendship Court after it was released was that this plan would take too long. In partnership with the Advisory Committee, we refined the plan, reducing the redevelopment to four phases. Four phases was the least number of phases we could devise while also maintaining quality of life through construction and other priorities expressed by Friendship Community community. The revised plan aims to have all Friendship Court families in their new homes within seven years.

The next step in the process is that the City needs to review the overall redevelopment plan to be sure the proposed plan will meet required City codes and necessary infrastructure, such as roads, parking, emergency vehicle access, etc. On June 13, we submitted this overall Preliminary Site Plan to the City for their review. When the review is completed, we will submit a detailed Phase 1 site plan (hopefully in late summer or early fall of 2018) to obtain the necessary Building Permits for construction.

With permits in hand and financing secured, construction is planned to begin around the beginning of 2020. Phase 1 construction will be completed, with families ideally moving in, towards the end of 2021. Through this process, like every development, we will face some factors that are partially outside our control. Examples include permit and entitlement approval, federal interest rate hikes and impact on financing, etc. As we have been so far, we will continue to do everything we can to mitigate for these factors and are deeply committed to maintaining this timeline.

The advantages of a phased development process to the Friendship Court community are immense. Given the painful legacy of urban renewal and institutionalized racism in our community and across the country, the opportunity to redevelop with zero displacement of community residents is both rare and exceptionally powerful.

Over the last two years, the Friendship Court Advisory Committee has provided crucial advocacy for the Friendship Court community through its thoughtful guidance and a clear conviction of purpose – the redevelopment of Friendship Court must unequivocally keep the aspirations and needs of the residents as its core focus.

The Advisory Committee is a team of nine Friendship Court residents elected by their neighbors and six members of the at-large Charlottesville community. They have met at least monthly over the past two years, sometimes twice a month during heavy work times.

The work the Advisory Committee has accomplished to date is extraordinary. Their commitment and vision have been, and will continue to be, vital to the success of redevelopment. We are deeply grateful for their time and devotion.

On November 29, the Friendship Court Advisory Committee took a field trip to Washington, DC to view four different housing developments that are considered relevant to the Friendship Court redevelopment plan. Five resident participants, including two of the youth leaders, three other Friendship Court Advisory Committee members, several Piedmont Housing Alliance board members and staff as well as architects with Grimm + Parker, traveled around the city to get an in-depth look at what the future redevelopment of Friendship Court could include. As the Advisory Committee works towards refining the framework provided by the Master Plan, they are participating in a series of design workshops or charrettes with Grimm + Parker. This tour of several mixed-income developments helped give the resident participants a better understanding of the Friendship Court project, and opportunities for how they may want to live, work, and play in downtown Charlottesville.

The group began their tour at a National Housing Trust-Enterprise site, Monseñor Romero Apartments, located in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood of DC. The National Housing Trust-Enterprise, Piedmont Housing Alliance’s partner, gave the group a tour of the property, originally built in 1908. After a five-alarm fire destroyed the apartments in 2008, they were redeveloped with financial help from NHT-Enterprise. All of the Monseñor Romero Apartment units are set aside for households earning no more than 60% of the area median income. The returning residents had rents established based on 30% of a household’s income through an internal subsidy program. The building was renamed Monseñor Romero Apartments after the fourth Archbishop of San Salvador, who was an advocate against poverty and social injustice. Participants enjoyed learning about this story and the commitment to the returning residents, and also enjoyed visiting the rooftop garden with views of northwest Washington, DC.

The second stop on the bus tour took the group to visit a development designed by Grimm + Parker just three years ago called The SeVerna and the SeVerna on K Street, in downtown DC. Situated in the area known as NoMA, it is a multi-generational community made up of two separate buildings accommodating studios, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments, offering affordable and market rate units. The development is located right next to public housing. The buildings, part of a larger master plan for the area, are helping to revitalize a city block between housing, schools, and transportation hubs. At this location, the participants were able to view the interior of one of the two-bedroom apartments and get a feel for the layout. The group embraced the design and scale of the two over two townhome-style units with a front and rear access. They also heard more about life at The SeVerna from a current resident during lunch, giving them a better feel for what life is really like there and in the neighborhood, both before and after the redevelopment.

The next stop was The Summit at St. Martin’s, a 184-unit apartment building in a residential area in Northeast DC that accommodates a unique community of work force and transitional housing with affordable rents. It is a four-story building above a one-story parking garage. While this development has less in common with the proposed plan for Friendship Court, one of the more interesting aspects of this property was its underground parking garage. Seeing this parking option up close gave the group a chance to see how it is secured, accessed, and used for residents and others on a day-to-day basis. There were also outside, above-ground courtyard areas that demonstrated unique uses of space. Some mentioned how much they enjoyed the common areas and other features, such as street-level walk-in units and a café room.

The final stop on the tour was Old Town Commons in Alexandria, comprised of newly constructed affordable and market-rate townhomes. In partnership with the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority, EYA redeveloped five city blocks once home to 194 units of aging public housing. The newly-constructed rental homes blend in seamlessly along Old Town’s historic streets, connecting a metro station to the Potomac River. This project achieved LEED certification which has significantly enhanced the living experience for the city’s residents, including central air and heat and in-unit washers and dryers. The scale of this property seemed to be consistent with Charlottesville. This mix of townhomes and multi-family buildings provides renters and home owners with choices in the type of housing that best works for families, singles, and seniors both in terms of design and affordability. Areas of focus in the development of Old Town Commons included interconnected streets and alleys, and walking them helped demonstrate connectivity within the neighborhood.

“The group has a much better understanding now of the proposed project and how it fits in an urban community. They also better understand that they are not alone in helping solve the residential urban condition,” said lead architect Mel Thompson of Grimm + Parker. Mel was very involved in the development of The SeVerna and The SeVerna on K Street and shared much of his first-hand knowledge about working on this project.

Project Manager, Beth Kennan added, “It was just a great opportunity for residents, board members, staff, consultants, and partners to actually come together and view relevant projects together. None of these projects is exactly what the Friendship Court redevelopment will look like, but each featured unique elements, and it was a great visioning opportunity.”

The day after the bus tour, the Advisory Committee participated in a follow up design charrette. This gave them an opportunity to translate their aspirations and observations into constructive dialogue around the site plan for the redevelopment of Friendship Court. Many of them commented on how they realize better now, as a result of the bus tour, how a mixed-income redevelopment is achievable for Friendship Court. The group split up into two groups to work on further developing the different plans to highlight the priorities for the project.

Many thanks to our partners Grimm + Parker, NHT-Enterprise, as well as EYA for these informative and exciting site visits.

In January / February 2018, the committee will review plans derived from design charrettes informed by these site visits. Soon after, discussions with the broader community of Friendship Court residents will take place in order to make sure everyone has a chance to provide input in shaping the new community plan.

Angela Brooks is a young mom with two teenaged sons. Friendship Court has been her home for more than fifteen years, and she’s seen a lot of changes in that time. “It’s definitely gotten better,” she says, “but there’s room for improvement.” That’s why Angela joined two committees focused on staying informed and providing input throughout redevelopment. An active member of the Residents’ Association, Angela volunteered to join the Advisory Committee as well. “I want to see what’s going on and stay informed. I want all the residents to be treated equally. I can help reassure other people in the neighborhood if I’m getting information firsthand instead of second- or third-hand.”

Angela works as a teacher of two-and-a-half to three-year-old children at Park Street Christian Preschool by day and cleans office buildings at night, leaving her little free time. It is noteworthy, then, that Angela chooses to spend some of that time attending meetings and making connections with community stakeholders involved in Friendship Court’s redevelopment.

“I think redevelopment is going to help the community be a friendlier, calmer place and a good place to call home. I’m looking forward to all the improvements to the apartments,” she said.

We’re delighted to have another long-term Friendship Court resident contributing to the redevelopment conversation. Welcome, Angela!

Friendship Court residents gathered on February 16th at the community center to learn and share ideas about the future redevelopment over dinner with neighbors. Residents engaged with Piedmont Housing Alliance staff and the Grimm and Parker architectural team working on Phase 1 of the redevelopment. Residents interacted with photos of other housing communities and answered the questions: What are your favorite things about Friendship Court? What do you want us to know about your community? Residents also talked with and gave feedback to other community partners related to City street planning and Charlottesville City Schools. A delicious dinner was provided by Afghan Kabob and Wayside Chicken. Kids got to indulge in fun photo booth activities during the night. Residents are encouraged to talk with Community Organizer Claudette Grant at the community center and to join us for quarterly community dinner meetings scheduled for May 11th, August 17th and November 16th.

The Friendship Court Advisory Committee continues to meet monthly. Their February meeting will include a kick-off meeting with members of recently-formed work groups focused on creating an Early Childhood Education Center and a Workforce Development Program. The Advisory Committee will also discuss ongoing resident engagement to inform physical and programmatic aspects of the redevelopment.

Throughout 2016, residents of Friendship Court of all ages have been engaged in conversations about redevelopment. Two leadership groups have emerged from this effort, the Friendship Court Advisory Committee, a team of seven residents elected by their neighbors and six members of the at-large community, and the Youth Leadership Program.

The Advisory Committee was integral in the door-to-door effort to gather feedback on the redevelopment Master Plan from each and every Friendship Court resident. Upcoming efforts will focus on gaining quality of life improvements for the community, the plan for an early childhood education center, workforce development and phase one design including architect selection.

The Youth Leadership Program consists of eight resident teens who will meet regularly over two years’ time, developing skills and offering insights for the community’s redevelopment. Sessions will focus on land use planning, community engagement, and related job skills training. In the last few months the teens have gone on a field trip to Charlottesville City Hall and learned interview and research skills from University of Virginia graduate students.

Piedmont Housing Alliance is committed to deepening and expanding meaningful relationships and leadership opportunities within the Friendship Court community to better serve the residents that live there.

On Tuesday, September 20, Piedmont Housing Alliance led a bus tour to explore exceptional early childhood education centers in both Norfolk and Richmond. The tour included Piedmont Housing staff, several board members, Friendship Court Advisory Committee members, and community representatives from the United Way, ReadyKids and the City of Charlottesville.

The purpose of the trip is to gain information about early childhood centers that have successfully attracted a mixed income population, with an eye toward the creation of an early childhood center at Friendship Court, as an element of that community’s redevelopment, beginning in 2019.

While on the tour, participants were able to visit classrooms and play areas, talk with staff, learn about school philosophies and visions, as well as methods of operations. Key learnings from the operations help inform how multiple levels of income and tuition can be accommodated and attract a truly diverse population.

The team will compile their findings and continue the discussion with area early childhood education stakeholders, as plans for Friendship Court continue to evolve.

Sarah McLean, a Director of the Adiuvans Relief Fund and the Adiuvans Foundation, a local philanthropy, is a member of the Friendship Court Advisory Committee. The committee will provide guidance to the Piedmont Housing Alliance in two primary areas: physical revitalization and community life.

In her work with Adiuvans, Sarah focuses on early intervention for young children and on a wide range of projects in the areas of health care, affordable housing, and food insecurity in the greater Charlottesville area. Through this work, Sarah has had the opportunity to learn about and support Piedmont Housing Alliance’s affordable housing efforts. Sarah is passionate about meeting the needs of our community’s most vulnerable residents, especially its families. She sees the redevelopment of Friendship Court as a unique opportunity to design affordable housing with an eye to accessibility, education, community health, and family support.

Sarah has a deep interest in public health, which she puts into practice as a volunteer nurse at the Greene County Free Clinic. She also serves on the board of The Arbor, a Charlottesville not-for-profit that provides a residential recovery program for survivors of human trafficking. She is a member of the Charlottesville/Albemarle Early Education Task Force, exploring the provision of accessible, high-quality pre-K for at-risk children in our community. Sarah received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from the University of Virginia. She lives in Free Union with her husband and four children.

Originally from Afghanistan, Zafar has a professional background in establishing peace, and organizing workshops and conferences. For eleven years, he worked with the United Nations. Zafar is currently a student at Piedmont Virginia Community College, and has also worked for the International Rescue Committee as an interpreter on a volunteer basis, since coming to Charlottesville. He hopes to bring his skills and experience working with a wide variety of people to the advisory committee.